Upper Foleshill (New Inn Bridge to The Parting of the Heaths)

Hi Kaga Simpson As kids we played a lot around the canal by the New Inn bridge. As I remember it, I think that we had been told about this "secret " tunnel. There was a gate into the grounds of the big house onto the tow path. On a number of occasions we would enter the garden when no one was about and go exploring, that's when we went into the tunnel. I must confess we were not too impressed because it didn't go very far under the Longford Road.

John Wright I remember the Simpson family but had not remembered their name, you gave me a clue with the Mill's and Rockley's van. One of the sons ran into our elderly neighbour on his bicycle, for some reason we always referred to the boys as the ' Cockney Kids' for some reason, can't remember them having cockney accents. You mentioned the shop at the top of Elmsdale Avenue, there were three shops in the road. The top one which was on the corner of Arbury Avenue was run by Mr. Bloxham if I remember right, the other two were at the corner of Barton Road on opposite sides of the road but I can't recall the names of the people who ran them. Was one of them the Bartletts? I remember a later chap who ran one of them used to run a car hire company from the shop as well, I think it was Comfi Car Hire, remember renting an Anglia 105 E from him when I was in my early twenties. This shop later became the offices of Lyng Electrics. Marilyn Goodenough was mentioned I think by Kaga, I knew her Father and Mother Eric and Grace. In fact Grace (nee Wheatley) is my Brother in Law's Aunty. Does anyone remember Brian Cooper he lived next door to one of the shops. Alan H

It seems we have deviated from the original Windmill Road School topic to a new one. The deviation is entirely my fault but could someone on Admin or someone with the knowhow create a new topic perhaps called Upper Foleshill (New Inn Bridge to The Parting of the Heaths) and if possible transfer posts 34-66 inclusive from the Windmill road School topic? Anyway, just spoke to my wife's uncle, Jeffrey Mann who has lived in King George's Avenue all his 76 years. He says that the Butchers almost opposite King Georges Ave was Thompsons and that Fellows newsagent was opposite Beresford Avenue. He said his brother Herbert went out with Mr Fellows daughter. He said there used to be 4 shops and a butchers shop (Nightingales) in King Georges Ave and a Firework Factory behind No 52 backing on to Barton Road. All have gone now. I have attached a letter from 1952 that Jeff kept concerning the Firework Factory. The two shops half way up Elmsdale Ave, opposite each other at Barton Rd. Was one called Piper's ?. I remembered buying cindered toffee (like Cadbury's crunchie honeycombe bar without the chocolate coating) from the Barton Rd side shop. Jeff still has sticks of licorice wood that he bought from that shop before it closed down. There is a Chinese takeaway (Wai Yip) between The William IV pub and Elmsdale Ave. Before that it was called the Great Wall but before that it was Jill's Barbeque.

I remember those crunchie bars you mention but have forgotten what they were called. I also remember one grocers in King Georges Ave. When I got married we rented a house belonging a Mrs Parish of Stoney Stanton RD. The house was two doors away from the shop, a weeks shopping in there cost about £4 a week. Directly opposite King Georges Ave was Parkstone club, I think the butcher you mentioned was just to the left of the club.

Derrickarthur, Yes I agree that we have moved quite away from the original "Windmill Road School" posting, and I am sure that someone in admin' will sort it out. I do remember the fireworks factory, I had a friend [Mickey Wooton] who lived in Booths Fields and we used to play in the factory after it closed down. The, now Chinese takeaway, Wai-yip was just a hot dog and burger bar in my day. I remember Joe Thompson the butcher shop, as a previous thread has mentioned opposite Ashby's pet shop. I cannot remember Mr fellows newsagents, probably because it was further up the Foleshill Road from where I lived or he was there before my time. one of my friends in Barton Road was Doris Pearson, can you remember her or her family?

johnwright I think I went to school with a girl from Barton Rd named Susan Pearson but there was another Pearson family that lived in Booths Fields. I was best mates with John Pearson who became (and still is a Builder) Still see him around. He had an older brother (Roy and sister - sh1t how could I forget her name - it's the age thing that does it) In Booths Fields they lived next door to the Farmer's. John's Mother moved to the bungalows next to the chippy at the Bedlam Lane roundabout which is now a Kindergarten type premises.

Hi Derrickarthur Good that the admin' have split the posts as you suggested. I do not remember the Pearsons of Booths Field, as I mentioned I knew the Wootons, Mickey Dennis, and Ennis. They lived about two doors up on the left from Barton Road. I also remember an old lady who lived about three quarters of the way up on the right who used to make and sell toffee apples. The Susan Pearson that you went to school with may have been the older sister of Doris Pearson who I went to school with, I will have to ask around. I recall the fish and chip shop on the corner of Bedlam Lane and Lythalls Lane, their daughter was in our class at Windmill Road school, her name was Anne Scorer. I Googled that part of the Foleshill Road where we came from, and on Google Earth, "walked" up past all the shops we have been talking about. Oh dear me what a sad difference to when I lived there, I think that the images must have been taken on a Sunday, every shop window was covered in full steel shuttering!! I remember when the local beat bobby on his rounds tried every shop door handle to ensure that the shop had been locked up properly. Proper community policing in those days. Today we read of a policeman telling a four year old child that riding her little bicycle on the pavement to school was against the law, and that he would confiscate her bike if she got on and rode it again after being told not to. I know which type of policing I prefer!! Do you remember the Humphreys who lived in Elmsdale Road? I went to school with David Humphreys and have just been told that he died aged only 47 years old, so sad.

johnwright, do you remember there was a small factory beside those shops, the gates where just inside Bedlam Lane, I worked there for a few months when I was fourteen, making small parts for spitfire guns. But mainly it was rubber and ebonite things, it got hit a few times with incendiaries. Anyone know if there was a small factory between Elmsdale Avenue and the Three Horseshoes, made bycycle wheels?

Kaga Simpson You may be a little mixed up with where I described where the shops were, they were on the Foleshill Road opposite Elmsdale Avenue. However there was a small factory premises similar to where you describe in Bedlam Lane. When you came to the end of Elmsdale to Bedlam Lane, directly across the road would be the end terrace of a few houses, next to this was the small "factory" premises. I knew it as "Brands Paper Suppliers", it was a warehouse which stocked all kinds of paper and card, I worked there for a few months when I was very young! With regard to a small factory between Elmsdale Avenue and the Three Horseshoes pub, I cannot recall anything like it in my time, or where it would have been.

I lived in Bedlam Lane from 1934 until 1961, the factory you mentioned was as you said the Ebonite, the girls who worked there use to stand at the gates at dinner time. Someone mentioned the fish and chip shop on the corner, it was run at that time by the Bonsor family.

Hi PhilipinCoventry. It would be about 1962/1963 when I was at Brands so as you can imagine my memory may be a little shaky. I do however have a distant bell ringing in my memory that there were two brothers working there, one was in the warehouse itself and the other in sales I think. As I have said it was a long, long time ago so I could be so wrong. If you are still in touch with your friends, Mike and David, they will most certainly have known my father-in-law, Alf Stevens.

What a coincidence. Kaga Simpson mentioned a small factory where he had worked many years ago in Bedlam Lane. The factory were making small parts for Spitfires in Ebonite. He also asked if there was a small factory between Elmsdale Avenue and the Three Horseshoes pub, that made bicycle wheel spokes. I said that I could not recall such a factory. Afterwards I started to "mentally" walk up the Foleshill Road to imagine where such a factory could have existed, the only place I could think of was just before the William IV pub was a driveway with, I think, garages up the top, there could have been a small factory there before my time. I decided to look on Google for factories making bicycle wheel spokes in Foleshill Coventry, I came across a site that had a book which listed all the manufacturing sites in Coventry, this book was the third edition for 1950, the first edition for 1919. The first part of the book lists manufacturing companies in alphabetical order, I was just flicking through it and came across the company The Coventry Ebonite & Rubber Co. Ltd, Bedlam Lane, Longford, Coventry, established 1914, telephone number 89056 [note it states Longford and not Foleshill!]. This is the coincidence, I have never heard of this company before Kaga mentioned it, then I find it in a book the next day! The other reason for this thread is that I found this book so interesting that other members might like to visit the site. The book is a photograph of each page starting with all the companies in alphabetical order, at the back of the book is an index of products and the companies that made them. To access this site in Google type in 'information bureau 1 union street Coventry', the page you want is the one identified as a PDF file.

John Wright I rented some garages on the site you referred to at the side of the William from 1959 for a number of years, there was nobody on the site making spokes during this time. The house and garages were owned by Jack Brindley the butcher at the time. I think the previous owner was Reg Mason (may have the name wrong) who was the local coalman, he used to live in a cottage to the right of the Wheatsheaf by the entrance to Courtaulds. Spent a lot of time working in a garage there helping my friend Ron Hackett, he was building an Austin Seven Special with a fibreglass sporty body. The guy who opened Jill's Barbecue used to park his Zephyr Convertible in the yard while we were there, it stood out by the side of my pre-war Ford 8. He later opened The Captains Table in Hillfields, the Friar Tuck in Gosford Street, the Castaways Night Club in Digbeth, Birmingham and the Forty Thieves in Coventry. His name was John Reeves, funny how you can remember names from fifty years ago but can't remember something that happened yesterday. I used to collect my wife (then my girlfriend) from the Shepherd when she had finished an evening shift and we would go over to the Castaways in Birmingham for a meal and a show. The Shepherd was a Berni Inn at this time. Does anyone remember the Castaways? Sorry if I am straying off the topic. Alan H